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Lordaeron
|government=Hereditary monarchy (formerly) |rulers=Lady Sylvanas Windrunner (current - forsaken) Varimathras (former) Balnazzar (former) King Arthas Menethil (former) King Terenas Menethil II (former) |affiliation= Contested , Alliance |population=100 }} Lordaeron is a subcontinent and a former human kingdom (aka Lordaeron Empire ) of the Eastern Kingdoms. Its name comes from the three main Alliance race languages: "lorn" (in Dwarven) that means "land", "daer" (in Common) that means "people" and "ronae" (in Thalassian) that means peaceful.Lands of Conflict, 19 Lordaeron's Capital City is also called Lordaeron"...Lordaeron's capital city (also called Lordaeron — silly humans).", Lands of Conflict, 108. Originally one of the Seven Kingdoms to emerge during the collapse of Arathor, Lordaeron was ruled by the House of Menethil and provided refuge for the people of Stormwind following that kingdom's destruction at the end of the First War. During the Second War, Lordaeron spearheaded the first Alliance's campaign against the Orcish Horde, but was almost entirely consumed by the Scourge during the Third War. This former nation'sWarcraft: The Roleplaying Game, pg. 50.Lands of Conflict, pg. 20, 31.Lands of Mystery, pg. 170. territory is now contested between the Scourge, the Forsaken, and fragmented pockets of human resistance, most notably the Scarlet Crusade and the Argent Dawn. City-state of Arathor Lordaeron was settled by the disenfranchised lords of Strom, capital of the nation of Arathor, who were part of a group that left Strom because they were desirous of the verdant lands to the north. The capital city served as a spiritual destination for the citizens of the seven human kingdoms. Lordaeron in Warcraft II *'Leader:' King Terenas II *'Nation Color:' White *'Background:' Ruled by the benevolent King Terenas II, the nation of Lordaeron stands as the last bastion of hope for humanity. The armies of Lordaeron were the first to heed the call to arms issued by Sir Lothar and the people of Azeroth. As patron of the Alliance, King Terenas II has assumed the heavy mantle of leadership to protect all who abide in his domain. The armies of Lordaeron are deeply religious and are driven by the belief that humanity must stand steadfast against the blasphemous onslaught of the Horde.[[Warcraft II manual|''Warcraft II manual]], 42'' The Alliance of Lordaeron Following the opening of the Dark Portal, the nations of Azeroth and Khaz Modan were conquered by the Horde. The refugees from Azeroth, led by Lord Anduin Lothar, fled across the sea to Lordaeron. There, Lothar convinced the leaders of the human nations, as well as the dwarves of Ironforge, gnomes of Gnomeregan, and high elves of Quel'Thalas, to join forces in the Alliance of Lordaeron. Under the leadership of King Terenas Menethil II and Lord Lothar, the Alliance was victorious, pushing the Horde back to the Dark Portal, and destroying the gateway to the orcs' homeworld. Lothar fell in the assault on Blackrock Spire, and with the loss of his political skill, rifts developed between the Alliance nations. The main issue of dispute was a tax levied by King Terenas to finance the internment of the orcs. Though Lordaeron attempted to retain its central role, several nations pulled their support from the Alliance. The Scourge of Lordaeron Following years of debate over the internment of the orcs, a plague appeared in the north of Lordaeron. As it spread throughout the towns and cities of Lordaeron, one after another fell to the Scourge, most notably Andorhal and Stratholme. Finally, with the corruption of the heir to the throne of Lordaeron, Prince Arthas Menethil, the capital city itself succumbed. Arthas' captains Falric and Marwyn alone were responsible for the slaughter of the aristocracy. Thus, in an ironic twist of fate, it was Lordaeron that lay in ruins, with refugees streaming to Khaz Modan and Azeroth. Arthas briefly assumed the title of King, and ruled as an agent of the Scourge, before the eruption of a civil war between his forces, the remaining dreadlords, and the free undead led by Sylvanas Windrunner assisted by the remaining forces of Lordaeron led by Lord Garithos. Windrunner's forces the Forsaken, with the aid of Garithos and his troops, achieved a victory over the dreadlords and Scourge, claiming the ruined former capital of Lordaeron (the "Ruins of Lordaeron"), under which the Forsaken, constructed the Undercity after betraying and slaughtering Garithos and his men. Lordaeron prior to the Cataclysm The remaining indigenous humans of Lordaeron may be broken down into three major groups, the Loyalists of Stormwind, the Scarlet Crusade and the Argent Dawn. The first are the folk of southern Lordaeron which have remained loyal to the Alliance, and have given their loyalty to the monarchy at Stormwind. These humans control three towns, scattered evenly across the southern regions of the nation. Southshore is the most important of these townships, and the only port north of the Thandol Span under Alliance control. To the north, nestled in the rolling foothills of Alterac lies the town of Hillsbrad, surrounded by the rich Hillsbrad Fields. The town controls an important mine on the coast, Azurelode Mine. Far to the west of these towns lies the town of Pyrewood Village, which receives it aid not from Stormwind, but from Dalaran. The town is friendly to the Alliance, but the dire curse laid upon it by the mage Arugal has prevented it from further integration. To the south of the town lies a refugee camp outside of the Greymane Wall, and its folk also support the Alliance. The Scarlet Crusade hold lands scattered throughout northern Lordaeron, and are by far the most numerically well endowed of the human factions of the former kingdom. Nominally a part of the Alliance, they are so fearful of the undead that they will attack any individual on sight. They hold several key positions in the Tirisfal Glades, including farmlands in the west, and their great stronghold in the region, the Scarlet Monastery above the north coast. In the Western Plaguelands they control the entire northern part of the zone from Hearthglen. They also maintain a presence in Andorhal. In the Eastern Plaguelands they control Tyr's Hand, and still nominally control the Scarlet Enclave beyond, although it has become depopulated due to invasion by the Scourge, and migration to Northrend. Their capital lies at Stratholme, where they hold a portion of the city. The Argent Dawn has bases throughout the Plaguelands, and is made up of those humans who have taken a more moderate approach to the war against the dead, accepting Horde and even Forsaken into their ranks. The Alliance has further strength in the region as well. A small high elven outpost can also be found near the bounds of the Ghostlands in the Eastern Plaguelands, Quel'Lithien Lodge. These elves have stayed committed to the Alliance, and are hostile to the Horde. Dalaranian troops also have a presence in southern Silverpine Forest. The Forsaken managed to take control of the heart of the old kingdom, claiming the Ruins of Lordaeron (and the Undercity beneath) as their base of operations. They use it to keep hold over much of the Tirisfal Glades, and control the towns Brill and Deathknell along the main east-west road of the region. They also control The Sepulcher in the center of Silverpine Forest, and the town of Tarren Mill in the Hillsbrad Foothills. The Syndicate, in an attempt to punish Lordaeron for its role in the fall of their kingdom of Alterac have taken the fortress of Durnholde Keep, and the surrounding countryside, although the Ravenholdt (a league of assassins) have attempted to curb their strength from their base at Ravenholdt Manor (Which also lies in former Lordaeron). Finally, the Undead Scourge holds Stratholme and Andorhal, as well as Scholomance in the southern Western Plaguelands. The Scourge are overwhelmingly the dominate force in much of Lordaeron, with a presence in all its zones except the Hillsbrad Foothills. On a side note, the mage Arugal controls large tracts of land in Silverpine Forest from Shadowfang Keep. Lordaeron post-Cataclysm The face of Lordaeron has been vastly changed following the cataclysm, mainly due to the work of the Forsaken who have begun to take their future into their own hands after the events in Northrend. Any sense of humanity that these walking dead once possessed has since left them, and they now seek to recreate the world into their own twisted image. Under the leadership of the Banshee Queen Sylvanas Windrunner, the Forsaken have begun a campaign to conquer all of the lands of Lordaeron, believing that what was once theirs in life should remain theirs in undeath. Now aided by the mysterious Val'kyr, the Forsaken have gained the ability to create new free-willed undead from human corpses and ensure the survival of their species. With the gates of the Greymane Wall now destroyed due to the cataclysm, hordes of Worgen under the control of Ivar Bloodfang and his Bloodfang pack have flooded into Silverpine Forest and in some cases as far north as Tirisfal Glades. Calling themselves the Gilneas Liberation Front, and after a few strategic victories in Silverpine, an all-out conflict has erupted between the two cursed races for supremacy of lands both claim as their own. The Forsaken have done much to strengthen their hold on once-contested lands and have almost completely removed the humans from Hillsbrad by eradicating Southshore completely with their plague. With Hillsbrad Foothills now under control of the Forsaken, hundreds of Hillsbrad farmers fled to Fenris Isle and in an act of revenge took the Worgen Curse to escape undeath and join the fight against the Forsaken. Not all have bowed before the mighty Forsaken war machine however, the Stormpike Guard have taken to the defense of Hillsbrad alongside the assistance of SI:7 and seek to drive out their undead enemies forever. Staged just east of Thoradin's Wall in Arathi Highlands the Forsaken front has been temporarily halted by the presence of Ogres, Witherbark Trolls, and the humans of the Syndicate and Stromgarde still vying for control of the region. The only living heir to the throne of Stromgarde, Danath Trollbane has yet to return from Outland to retake his throne. Complicating matters further is the newly reanimated Galen Trollbane, heir and prodigy of Danath, who now seeks to undo his kingdom in service of the Banshee Queen. With the death of the Lich King, the heavily corrupted Plaguelands have begun to recover from the Plague of Undeath and life has started to return largely due to the efforts of the Cenarion Circle and Argent Crusade. The Western Plaguelands has become another pivotal battleground between the Alliance and Horde and both factions are waging war to gain control of the the traditional breadbasket of Lordaeron. The razed town of Andorhal is at the center of this conflict where both sides have begun re-building, fighting the last pockets of Scourge resistance, and undermining each other at the same time. In the Eastern Plaguelands the Argent Crusade has begun staging a massive effort to retake the region, but so far their efforts have come at a great cost against the heavily entrenched scourge remnants. Still a land draped in shadow and treachery resulting from its dark past, Lordaeron nonetheless remains one of the most important strategical locations in the Eastern Kingdoms. The Horde, under command of their new warchief Garrosh Hellscream seek to tighten their grip on the region to remain watchful over their Dwarf and Human enemies to the south. While it may never again become the shining center of human culture and power it once was, very few members of the Alliance are willing to give up some claim to their once-great homeland and they seek to retake it at any cost. Areas The Capital City of Lordaeron once controlled the Eastern Plaguelands, the Western Plaguelands, the Tirisfal Glades, the Hillsbrad Foothills, most of Silverpine Forest, and part of the Alterac Mountains (Chillwind Point, and the town of Strahnbrad). Also possibly North Lordaeron, which is currently a Closed zone. Zones in World of Warcraft *Alterac Mountains (absorbed into Hillsbrad Foothills as of ) *Arathi Highlands *Eastern Plaguelands *Eversong Woods *Ghostlands *Hillsbrad Foothills *Hinterlands *Isle of Quel'Danas *Silverpine Forest *Tirisfal Glades *Western Plaguelands *Quel'thalas (comprised of Eversong Woods and Ghostlands) Other regions *Crestfall *Dalaran *Gilneas *Kul Tiras *Tol Barad (accessible in , but different from lore) *Zul'Dare *Channel Islands *Northeron *Undercity - Though Undercity is located in Tirisfal Glades, the city is also an underground region.Lands of Conflict, pg. 106. Notable Leaders * * * * * * This is a chart following the events of Warcraft III and World of Warcraft. Media Videos File:WoW Pro Lore Episode 12 The Seven Kingdoms-2|Lordaeron of the Seven Kingdoms File:WoW Pro Lore The Alliance of Lordaeron-1369867657|The Alliance of Lordaeron See also *The Seven Kingdoms *The Alliance of Lordaeron *Ruins of Lordaeron References da:Lordaeron de:Lordaeron es:Lordaeron fi:Lordaeron fr:Lordaeron no:Lordaeron Category:Eastern Kingdoms Category:Geography Category:Human nations Category:Human territories Category:Lore